Gauging apparatus



June 5, 1945.

H. W. WINELAND GAUG I NG APPARATUS 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Oct. 12, 1945 INVENTOR HARRY W WINELAND ATTORNEYS Patented June 5, 194 s GAUGING APPARATUS Harry W. Wineland, Independence,.M0., assignor to Remington Arms Company, Inc., Bridgeport,

Cnn., a corporation of Delaware a Application October 12, 1943,; Serial No. 505,921.

.6 Claims.

The present invention relates to an improvement in gauging apparatus, and while the apparatus may be used in gauging operations in connection with various types of articles, as will be obvious from the following disclosure, the illustrated form of the invention is especially adapted for thegauging of cartridges, particularly theinspection gauging for primer depth. The depth of the'primer in the primer pocket of a cartridge must be extremely accurate asa slightly high primer may impede the automatic feeding of the cartridge in the gun and a slightly low primer may fail to fire. Hence, the allowable tolerance in the height position of the primer is very small, and any shifting from normal of the central gauge contacting point of the primensuch as might be caused by slight tilting misalignment of the cartridge in the gauging machine will result in inaccurate gauging, with the possibility that a great many cartridges that shouldpass the gauging test Will be automatically rejected, while imperfect cartridges will be passed as perfect.

The present gauging apparatus is especially adapted for use in an automatic gaugingmachine of the type disclosed in the patent to Z. P. Candee for Gauging mechanism, 1,783,404, granted December 2, 1930. In the mechanism disclosed in this patent the cartridge primer depthgaugin operation is predicated on the theory that all cartridge cases are in perfect axialalignment with I the gauging rod as they pass through the primer depth gauge station. In this mechanism the gauging rod operates through a rigid main plate and is guided by a rigid face plate, which makes no'allowance for misalignment of th cartridge cases on the guide bar; hence, if a cartridge case is tilted into slightly misaligned position, the tilting will fulcrum about the peripheral edge of the head of the cartridge case, causing the center of the primer to move away from the face plate, with the result that the gauging rod in gauging contact with the center of the primer will gauge the primer. as low, whereas it may in fact be high or perfect. a I

Itis anobject of the present invention to pro vide a gauging apparatus wherein a flexible guide plate is provided for contact with the cartridge case head, and through which the gauging'rod is guided, and whereby any tilting misalignment of the cartridge case will fulcrum'about the'central point of the primer, while the periphery moves inwardly at one side and outwardly at the other side, thus maintaining the central gauging rod contact point at a fixed point'with respect to the gauging station irrespective of misalignment of the cartridge case. V I

. With the above and other objects in view,.an embodiment of the invention is shown in the accompanylng drawings, and this embodiment Will behereinafter more fully described with reference thereto, and the invention will be finally pointed 1out'in the claims.

In the drawings: I Fig.1 is a fragmentary plan View of a gaugin machine having the gauging apparatus of the invention incorporated therein. a

v Fig. 2 is 'a vertical sectional view thereof,,take

generally along the line 22 of Fig.1. a Fig. 3 is an enlarged side elevation of the gauging apparatus of; the invention, showing a cartridge in cooperative relation therewith.

Fig. 4 is a vertical longitudinal sectional view thereof. V I Fig. 5 is a top plan view.

Fig. 6 is a front elevation, detachedfrom the gauging machine.

Fig. 7 is a horizontal sectional plan View, showing the cartridge in cooperative relation therewith, and in a laterally tilted misaligned position.

Similar reference characters indicated corresponding parts throughout the several figures of the drawings.

- The gauging machine, illustrated as an example of a type of machine in which the gauging apparatus of the invention is especially adapted to beincorporated, automatically gauges or inspects the articles guided therethrough, and usually in cludes a series of successively arranged gau in or I inspection stations for performing various gauging operations, each station including automatic ejection means whereby the articles failing to rneet the gauging standard are ejected, so that theyare segregated intogroups, one for each gaugingtest. In the operation of this machine, the articles are guided from a dial or other mechanism and conducted by any convenient mechanism to the successive stations where they are automatically gauged. If these successive gaugings are within the allowable tolerances the articles are discharged from the machine into a conveniently arranged receptacle. The gauging apparatus of the present invention is concerned with the gauging operation of determining the primer depth of a cartridge, that is, whether the primer is inserted in the primer pocket to the proper depth, or is high or low. This gauging operation is essentially a lengthgauging operation along the central axial line of the cartridge case, the point of the bullet being pressed against a fixed abutment and the gauging rod being brought into contact with the center of the primer. While the apparatus .is especially adapted for the gauging o-f cartridge cases, it will be obvious that the invention may be employed for other analogous gaugingoperations and for other types of articles.

The gauging machine consists generally of a bed plate 1'0 having fixedthereon alongitudinally extending table II provided with an abutment guide bar I2 against which the bullet ends of the cartridges are engaged and one or more track:

guide bars I3 and I4 upon which the cartridges.-

roll to and between the several inspection stations, being fed to the machine atone endover a. guide: plate I5 and being intermittently moved along; the guide bars in spaced relation to the gauging" stations by carrier bars I8. During the gauging. operation the cartridges are engaged by holders I1, the carrier bars being so arranged and oper-- ated that when the holders move. upwardly and. away from the cartridges the carrier bars. movev downwardly and engage. them, one cartridge in each of several notches in. their lower-edges, then moves" substantially parallel with the top of. the table II. carrying the articles to the successive stations. When in. register with the stations the. holder moves downwardly and engages and holds the articles in position for the gauging,v operation and the carrier bars move to their former position for the next feed movement.

The gauging mechanism is carried. upon two slides I8 and I9, having lateral movement. toward and away from the-tabled! in slideways 2'02ll and deriving their. movement through link connections. 2I'-2I and 225-22. with rock. arms 23 and 24 actuated by cams, 2.5 and. 26, the rock arm 23 being maintained in engagement with its. cam by means of a spring 21 and the rock arm.24 being maintained in engagement. with its. cam by means-of a spring 28.

Fixed on the slide I9 is a guide block.29-in which is. guided a gauge slide "having. apin 3I that limits its movementin one direction,and provided at. its inner end with a gauging opening.3.2.. J ournaled in; a. bracket 33 secured. to the slide I9 is a; trip lever. 34-, engaged atitsv upper end against the outer end of the slide 30 by means; of a spring 35, its lower. end being movable into and out of the, path of. a tripball 36, which travels in the. groove of a worm 3.1. Fixed tothe. worm housing 38. in relation to each gauging station is a" journal block 39, in which ishinged a rockarm having. a cam face. 4I that projects over the. worm 3'! to a point adjacent to aline .drawnvertically withthecenter thereof.

Uponthe slide: IB-there is securediaheadmeme ber 42. in which. is threaded a sleeve- 43 having. slidably engaged therein. the gauging rod 44, the. axis. of which is in linewith the axis of the cari tridge case to be gauged. as willpresently more;

fully appear. Journaled; in the. blocks. 45 held in the-head member 42. is the gauging, lever 46: carryinga hardenedplu'gfil atits outer. end. Se-- curedto this gauginglever isa gauging plate 48,, the end. of. which is maintained in contact. with theqendv of the gauging rod 44 by a spring: 49-, and anadjustingv screw 50 beingprovidedinthe lever for; varying the position of the gauging plate as desired. The gauging, lever:46 is'soformedthat the space between the center. of the; fulcrum thereof, that is the axisof: the journals of the blocks 45, and the outer end; of. the. plug llilisa. multiplied length ofthe distance between said center, andithe-axis of-th'e'gauging rod. 44;, so that any movement of the gauging lever by reason of the variation in position of the gauging rod parallel to its axis is greatly increased at the plug 41, and hence, any variation in the position of the end of the gauging rod as it contacts the primer of the cartridge is magnified in the movement of the plug 41, a, too low primer causing the plug to move upwardly, and a too high primer causing it to move downwardly, these entrances being indicated by the dot-and-dash lines in Fig. 21

The opening 32 in the gauge slide 39 is of such size that it will permit the plug 47 to enter there.- inwithin the extremes of the tolerances of variation in the height of the primer. Should there i be any variation, due to a too low or a too high primer the magnified movement of the plug 47 of the lever 45 will bring it out of line with the periphery of the opening 32, so that as the slide I9 is moved forwardly the plug will engage the face of the gauge slide, causing the gauge slide to move within the block 29. during the. further movement. of the slide I9. This action will cause the trip lever M to rock upon its pivotv mounting, engage the trip ball 36, and move the same inzthe groove of the worm 37 so that it is on theopposite side of the center thereof. In this new-position, outlined by the dot-and-dash linesin Fig. 2-, the ball will actuate the rock arm 40 duringthe. rotation of. the worm and through this operation actuate the discharge mechanism, presently to.be more fully described.

Adjacent to each of the inspecting stations, is a chute 5| throughthe tablev I I, one wall of which is closed by a hinged gate 52 between which end the rock arm 49 is a push rod 53, a spring. 54, ex.- tending between the lower end of thegateandithe. journal'bracket 39,. normally retaining the rock armin gate closing position. When thegateisin its normal position, shown inFig. 2,.the cartridge rides thereover during its travel from. one'station to the other, but if the-preceding cartridgehasnot measured up to the gauging test, the ba llafisactua ates the rock arm 49 as above pointed out,, and this.- in turn moves the gate 52. upon its mount, ing, through the rod 53 against the. tension ofithe spring 54, so that it occupies the position indiof the present invention, exceptinsofar-as it co:-

operates therewith in the carrying. out ofthe automaticv gauging operation, but-isherein described in sufficiently general language for. acompleteun derstanding of the operation of the apparatus of theinvention.

Upon. the inner side of the table II. thereais: mounted a vertically disposed plate. 55- of; gen, erally rectangular form secured theretobymeans of screws 56 engaged, through. holes 57. in. the. plate. The upper portion of the plate pro-, jects above the upper sideiof the table Ill and is extended at each end, as at 58-58; to' abut the ends 58 of the fixed guide plates- 55 of the adjacent gauging stations, sub'stantially'cen=-- trally' of the ejection chute-5l, to provide a continuous abutment guide for the head endsor the cartridges A as they are fed into the. gauging station into alignment with the gauging rod-4'4; Upon the inner side'of the plate 55 there isiproivi'deda'bar portion 59, the uppersurface: of which constitutes a supporting guide for the:head end of..the cartridge; and which is. set inan angular recess. 6.0. in the table inline withtheguidebar. I4 and with theupperzsupporting. end ofthe. jee,

tion gate 52 disposed within the gap at the upper end of the chute between the bar portion '59 and the bar M. The bar portion 59 may be integrally formed with the plate 55, or it may be separately formed and secured thereto by welding or other suitable means. l

The plate 55 is provided in its upper portion in line with the gauging rod with a cylindrical passage El slightly larger than the diameter of the head of the cartridge and extending to a circular recess 62 upon the outer side of the Plate, this recess being provided in its flat. base with a series of spaced pockets 63 for positioning pressure springs, as will presently more fully appear. Upon the'outer side of the plate 55 in overlying relation tothe recess 62 there is mounted a bearing block member 64 secured by means of countersunk screws 65 engaged in passages 66 in the block member, this block member being provided with a centrally disposed cylindrical guide passage 6'! for the gauging rod, extending to awspherical surfaced socket 68 upon its inner surface arranged in opposed complementary relation to the recess 62, the diameter of this socket being slightly smaller than'thediameter of the recess 62, and its spherical surface being generated from an axis point substantially in the plane of the inner surface of the plate 55 calculated as essentially coincident with the plane of the center of the end surface of the primer B in the headof the cartridge.

Within the socket 68 there is engaged for universal swivelingmovement a spherical surfaced cartridge support member 69, provided centrally with a cylindrical extension 10 engaged through the passage 6| of the plate 55 with slight clearance, the shouldered surface H of this member, between its spherical surface and the extension 10, being slightly beveled outwardly and being substantially spaced from the base of the recess 62 to permit of the limited free rolling movement of the support member in its socket. The shouldered surface 10 is provided with a series of pockets 12 opposed to the pockets B3 of the recess 62 a series of pressure springs 13 being seated in these pocket and exerting pressure to retain the member 69 in firm contact with the socket 68 and to normally maintain it in coaxially aligned relation with the gauging rod. The member 69 is provided with a central cylindrical passage 14, normally in axial line with the guide passage 61 of the block member 64, and of slightly larger diameter than the end of the gau ing rod engaged therein. 5

A bearing plate 15 for the end of the gauging rod is secured upon the outer side of the block member 64 by means of screw 16 engaged through holes 11 in the plate, a threaded guide bushing 18 being screwed into a threaded passage 19 in the plate and locked into position by means of a lock nut 80, the guide passage of this bushing constituting a slide bearing for the end of the gauging rod.

In operation the cartridge A is fed into the gauging station in axial line with the end of the support member 69 and the gauging rod, its head end being in contact with the end of the extension 10 of the bearing member and its point end being in engagement with the abutment guide bar I l 2. The gauging rod moves into contact with the center of the primer B of the cartridge through the inward movement of the slide 18, and if the height of the primer is within the allowable tolerances the gauging lever 46 remains in a substantially centralized position, so that it will enter the opening 32 of the gauge slide 30 as the slideol9 moves inwardly, and hence the trip mechanism for operating the release gate 62 will not be actuated- In the event that the primer is either high. or low, movement .will be impartedto the gauging lever 46 to bring its plug end 41 out of line with the opening 32, whereupon inwa'rd movement of the slide 19 causes relativemovementlto be imparted to the gauge slide 30 to actuate the trip mechanism causing the gate .52 to open, so that as the cartridge is fed from the gauging station during the succeeding feedmovement itshead end will be unsupported by the gate as it .comesinto register with the slot opening of the chute 5|, and such rejected cartridge will; drop down through the chute to a suitable receptacle;

In the event that' the cartridge is in a misaligned position, as it is brought into relation with the gauging station, its tilted position will cause the'support member 69 to roll into' tilted position within thesocket 68 in correspondence therewith, the tilting taking place about the axis of the spherical surface of the bearing member in exact, coincidence with the center of the primer" B of the cartridge, the periphery of the head of the cartridge moving into the passages! of the plate 55 atone side and away from it at the other side, as shown in Fig. 7. Hence, the misalignment of the cartridge will not change the position of the center of the primer where the end of the gauging rod contacts it, with the resuit, that an accurate gauging takes place irrespective of the tiltedposition or the degree of tilt.

It is pointed out that previously the tilting of the cartridge in relation to a fixed supporting plate for its head end caused the center point of the'primer to move away from the normal gauging point through fulcruming about the periphery of the head end, and consequently the gauging rod would project to an increased extent to engage the primer with the result that the tilted cartridge would be gauged as having a low primer, whereas it might in fact be perfect or high.

The form of the invention illustrated in the drawings and described herein is typical and illustrative only, and it is evident that the invention is capable of embodiments in other forms, all falling within the scope of the appended claims, which are to be broadly construed.

What is claimed is:

1. In a gauging apparatus, a bearing member having a spherical surfaced bearing socket, and a support member for engaging a part of an article to be gauged having a spherical surfaced bearing portion engaged in said socket, the axis point of said socket being coincident with a predetermined gauging point of said article, whereby upon misalignment of said article said support member moves correspondingly therewith without causing movement of said predetermined gauging point.

2. In a gauging apparatus'a bearing member having a spherical surfaced bearing socket, a support member for engaging a part of an article to be gauged having a spherical surfaced bearing portion engaged in said socket, the axis point of said socket being coincident with a predetermined gauging point of said article, whereby upon mis-.

alignment of said article said support member moves correspondingly therewith without causing movement of said predetermined gauging point, and yieldable spring means disposed between said bearing member and said support member to normanyretain? satin? :sup ortzamemhemm aarneutnal position: of alignment; witn-,.-amalfgnedij.amtinle.:

3.2111 ae gauging: apparatuag-suppeiiz meanafnr engaging aipart ofi an arfiiele. toxbevgaugeilLa flexible mnunting' fonsaidssugpnrizmeansiadapfied f onnmvement "of saidi suppormmeaziei azhnutl-aapre determined gauging poihtzefcsaidiavticltafwliereby upon; misalignment: of said article? 'suppnnt means; maves: correspondingly therewith. meme: causing movementof: saidipredetferminedi gauging point said support: means havingz azt augereceiwingr passage .tlierethrougnxextendingitet sai'di gaugiing point; guide meanshaving .atguideipassagaceaxial with said' passage; 01%: saidisuppovtlmembex; and: a: gauging 1 0d slidabie imsaidi guide passage and enga'geabi'e throughis aid passage. in. saidisizpport means with said gauging point-2; 4'; In a gauging apparatus; asbearingrmember having a spl'ierieal' surfacediloBaring'scieket;astsumport member for engaging aapart; article-to gauged having a sphenical'i surfiace'd' bearing portion engaged 'in said soeket the! axis mm of said soeket being coinciiient witlrra predeternfined gauging point of said article whereby: upon alignment of said article said support member moves correspondingly therewitfi-witheuti causing .movement' of said predetermined" gauging; point;

said support meanshav'ing an axial -gauge receiv ing passage-therethrou'g-h*extendihg'to'saiid gaug ing point, guide-meanshavi'ng'a g uide passageeo axial with said passage: of said support" member; and a gauging rod slidabl'e iirsa=id guide passage and engageable through zsaid passagein said support" means with said gaugingpoint, there-being aemzgaes amularelearancehetmeem saidz-gaugingasmd. and saidasupportmembenz. 5 a 'SuInYQQmbi'natiQnLim a1 gauging? maehine an anti-ole; feeding: guideway for intermittently feed;- ing: articles tea gauging station, airfixedoguide member in relation to: said station 'disposedz'in alignment witflmguide meansof said guideWay a'diaeeniz thereto; and: having;v am opening support mean-stimsaid opening foreng-a'ging. a pant of article: to? be gaugedi a: flexible; mduntingf for" saiid suppontmeansadapt'edafon movement ofisai'dtslipiport means:- about': a: predetermined:gauging point ofsaidiarticle, whereby-upon misalignment of said arti'eleisa-id support mea'ns;moves?ccmrespcmdingly therewithiwithout; causingrmevement: of sample:- determined gauging: point;v said: support means having a: gaugereceiving passaget theret/hrough extending; tdsaid: gauging point; wherebygaug-t- 

